Most of 31,000 Uttarakhand dam affected families to get "peanuts" as compensation, says fresh calculation

By A Representative
A fresh calculation following the recent Uttarakhand government’s announcement that it is “ready” to pay six times what is called the “circle rate” as compensation payable to the projected affected families (PAFs) of the proposed 5,040 MW Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project (PMPP), has suggested that the distribution of the total amount – Rs Rs 6,520.1 crore – would be “highly skewed” and “unequal.”
According to official sources, the Pancheshwar dam is likely to lead to land acquisition to the tune of 3,735 hectares (ha) of private land. The Social Impact Assessment (SIA) report, prepared by government-appointed consultants, WAPCOS, estimates that it would impact 31,023 families in three districts of the state – Pithoragadh, Almora and Champawat.
The calculation, carried out by the civil rights organization Mahakali Lok Sangathan (MLS), based in Pithodagadh, Uttarakhand, has unearthed a stark reality: In just one village, Majirkanda, would be getting 65% (Rs 4,211.39 crore) of the total compensation amount, even though in just one district, Pithoragadh, 23 villages would be affected.
“As per the SIA report, 1,279.21 ha land (which 34% of the total land to be acquired for the project) falls in one village, Majirkanda of Pithoragarh district”, an analysis, by Srendrandra Arya and Prakash Bhandari based on the calculation says, adding, “It is unclear how such a large chunk of land is falling in just one village.”
“Compare this to another project affected village in Pithoragarh district, Kaanadi, which will be totally displaced by the dam”, the analysis says, adding, “A total of 3.9 hectares (195 naalis) of private land is to be acquired here, and the compensation rate here amounts to Rs 80,000 per naali (circle rate is Rs 20,000 per naali).”
“Even if this is multiplied six times of the applicable circle rate of the area, it amounts to about Rs 1.2 lakh per naali”, the analysis underlines, suggesting this is far below the actual market rate.
“The main question, which the PAFs are raising, is whether with this amount it is at all possible for a family to buy fertile and productive land in a well-connected village in the area. For instance, if people of Kaanadi were to search for land around Wadda, the current rates there are around Rs.7-8 lakhs/naali”, the analysis says.
Kailash Chand from Kanaadi village laments, “There are 40 plus families who will be completely displaced in the village and this dam is a nightmare for us. All the figures of land in the survey are incorrect. The amount of land involved is substantially higher than has been recorded by WAPCOS in the SIA report”.
Pointing out that similar is the case in with 13 out of the 20 impacted villages of Almora district, the analysis says, “In Champawat district, where out of the 15 villages, seven will be impacted, the compensation rate is worse, Rs. 0.50 per naali. Even six times circle rate won’t enable farmers to buy land elsewhere.”
Worse, the analysis says, the calculation suggests that 23 villages of Pithoragadh alone villages would be paid Rs 5,452 crore, i.e 84%, of the total compensation budgeted for private land acquisition, i.e Rs 6,520.1 crore.
“It is important to note that these 23 villages have less than one fourth (23%) of the total PAFs – 7102 of the 31,023 PAFs”, the analysis says, adding, “As a result of this inequality about 80% of the PAFs will get amounts equal to peanuts for the kind of fertile and diverse land base that will be lost. It is clear that the displacement because of the dam will push thousands of families into poverty and an economic crisis.”

Comments

The golden crop: How turmeric is transforming women's lives in tribal India

By Vikas Meshram* When the lush green fields of turmeric sway in the tribal belt of southern Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, it is not merely a spice crop — it is the golden glow of self-reliance. In villages where even basic spices once had to be bought from the market, the very soil today is yielding a prosperity that has transformed the lives of thousands of families. At the heart of this transformation is the initiative of Vaagdhara, which has linked turmeric with livelihoods, nutrition, and village self-governance — gram swaraj.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Authoritarian destruction of the public sphere in Ecuador: Trumpism in action?

By Pilar Troya Fernández The situation in Ecuador under Daniel Noboa's government is one of authoritarianism advancing on several fronts simultaneously to consolidate neoliberalism and total submission to the US international agenda. These are not isolated measures, but rather a coordinated strategy that combines job insecurity, the dismantling of the welfare state, unrestricted access to mining, the continuation of oil exploitation without environmental considerations, the centralization of power through the financial suffocation of local governments, and the systematic criminalization of all forms of opposition and popular organization.

Echoes of Vietnam and Chile: The devastating cost of the I-A Axis in Iran

By Ram Puniyani The recent joint military actions by Israel and the United States against Iran have been devastating. Like all wars, this conflict is brutal to its core, leaving a trail of human suffering in its wake. The stated pretext for this aggression—the brutality of the Ayatollah Khamenei regime and its nuclear ambitions—clashes sharply with the reality of the diplomatic landscape. Iran had expressed a willingness to remain at the negotiating table, signaling a readiness to concede points emerging from dialogue.

False claim? What Venezuela is witnessing is not surrender but a tactical retreat

By Manolo De Los Santos The early morning hours of January 3, 2026, marked an inflection point in Venezuela and Latin America’s centuries-long struggle for self-determination and independence. Operation Absolute Resolve, ordered by the Trump administration, constituted the most brutal and direct military assault on a sovereign state in the region in recent memory. In a shocking operation that left hundreds dead, President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores were illegally kidnapped from Venezuelan soil and transported to the United States, where they now face fabricated charges in a New York federal detention facility. In the two months since this act of war, a torrent of speculation has emerged from so-called experts and pundits across the political spectrum. This has followed three main lines: One . The operation’s success indicated treason at the highest levels of the Bolivarian Revolution. Two . Acting President Delcy Rodríguez and the remaining leadership have abandone...

The selective memory of a violent city: Uttam Nagar and the invisible victims of Delhi

By Sunil Kumar* Hundreds of murders take place in Delhi every year, yet only a few incidents become topics of nationwide discussion. The question is: why does this happen? Today, the incident in Uttam Nagar has become the centre of national debate. A 26-year-old man, Tarun Kumar, was killed following a dispute that reportedly began after a balloon hit a small child. In several colonies of Delhi, slogans such as “Jai Shri Ram” and “Vande Mataram” are being raised while demanding the death penalty for Tarun’s killers. As a result, nearly 50,000 residents of Hastsal JJ Colony are now living in what resembles a state of confinement.

The price of silence: Why Modi won’t follow Shastri, appeal for sacrifice

By Arundhati Dhuru, Sandeep Pandey* In 1965, as India grappled with war and a crippling food crisis, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri faced a United States that used wheat shipments under the PL-480 agreement as a lever to dictate Indian foreign policy. Shastri’s response remains legendary: he appealed to the nation to skip one meal a day. Millions of middle-class households complied, choosing temporary hunger over the sacrifice of national dignity. Today, India faces a modern equivalent in the energy sector, yet the leadership’s response stands in stark contrast to that era of self-reliance.

Love letters in a lifelong war: Babusha Kohli’s resistance in verse

By Ravi Ranjan* “War does not determine who is right—only who is left.” Bertrand Russell’s words echo hauntingly in our times, and few contemporary Hindi poets embody this truth as profoundly as Babusha Kohli. Emerging from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, Kohli has carved a unique space in literature by weaving together tenderness, protest, and philosophy across poetry, prose, and cinema. Her work is not merely artistic expression—it is resistance, refuge, and a call for peace.

Search This Blog